The Prairie Agricultural Machinery Institute wants to build a better mousetrap for seabuckthorn producers.
With grant money secured this year, PAMI plans to develop two harvesters, one for the plant’s berries and the other for the leaves.
An efficient harvesting method could help expand Western Canada’s seabuckthorn industry.
“As of right now, the only thing that’s viable is five acres,” said Colin McLoughlin, chief executive officer of Canada Seabuckthorn Enterprises, based in Peachland, B.C.
“That can be handled by a family. Over and above that, they have to start thinking about hiring people. But it’s hard to find people to pick fruit on the Prairies.”
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PAMI will develop the harvesters in partnership with the University of Manitoba, the University of Saskatchewan and the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration. The research is backed with $370,000 from the Manitoba Rural Adaptation Council and the Saskatchewan Agricultural Development Fund.
Design and construction of the harvesters begins this winter, said Don Petkau, PAMI’s manager of agricultural research and development.
After testing the prototypes next summer, researchers and engineers will return to the drawing board to make the necessary modifications.
The modified designs will be used the following winter to build a berry harvester and a leaf harvester.
Allen Smith, president of the British Columbia Seabuckthorn Growers Association, agreed that mechanization will help the industry move forward. In some overseas countries hand harvesting is common, but the costs of labor are also lower.
“There’s no way you’re going to pick these things by hand and make any money at it.”
Smith already uses what he considers an adequate and inexpensive way to harvest Indian Summer varieties.
He suspends a device shaped liked an upside down umbrella to the base of the tree. Another device shakes the tree, causing the berries to fall into the catchment set-up below.
